Saluda County 4-H Summer 2023

September 25, 2023

Lauren Black Venegas

4-H Youth Development Agent 

Saluda County

As we end summer and fall begins, Saluda 4-H is in full swing. We wrapped up the Spring with several camps during Spring Break and one of our 4-Hers, Mya Chapman, attending the National 4-H Conference in Washington, D.C. We also had a great group of Juniors attend Junior Teen Weekend at Camp Long in April.

As summer began, we offered several camp opportunities starting in June and going through July. We partnered with the Saluda School District to provide 4-H classes during the Summer Reading Program for June. We highlighted the different program areas of 4-H during those four weeks. Some of the student’s favorites were paper rockets, homemade bread, penny boats, hay lesson, and so much more.  Some of the camps that we offered this summer were:

All things Nature. We had a morning and afternoon group. We learned about pollinators, ecosystems, and soil layers during this camp. We planted two pollinator gardens in front of the Extension office. They planted their own garden seeds and made their own mini ecosystem through things that are outside.

Sewing Camp was a three-day camp that had a beginner group in the morning and an older group in the afternoon. The morning group made snake pillows with cat faces while learning how to hand sew, sew on a button, and sew with a machine. The afternoon group made lounging pants. They also learned about hand sewing and sewing on a machine.

Baking Camp was a two-day camp that had a morning and afternoon group. On the first day, they learned about the different baking equipment and how to measure ingredients correctly, and we made homemade cupcakes, icing, and pretzels. On the second day, we learned about all things pie. They made their own homemade pie crust and then used it to make pop tarts and mini apple pies.

At the beginning of July, we started with the State 4-H Congress. Mya Chapman was awarded the highest honor in 4-H during the banquet, the Presidential Tray.

We then picked back up with camps to finish off the summer. Those camps were:

Kids in the Kitchen is a two-day camp with a morning and afternoon group and a third group on different days for the two-day camp in the morning. They learned the proper way to measure, and each youth made their own scrambled eggs. We also made breakfast and dinner entrees.

Robotic Camp was a one-day camp with a morning and afternoon group. They learned about coding electric circuits and built their own robot.

We ended the summer camps with an Arts and Craft camp. It was a one-day camp with a morning and afternoon group. They learned about using different techniques to paint. We used tin foil, bubble wrap, and forks.

This summer was jam-packed and fun. We took some time in August to get caught up and plan the new 4-H year. As fall starts, we have a lot planned for the upcoming 4-H year. We celebrated the past year’s accomplishments in September with a drop-in awards ceremony followed by the after-school clubs. We had five youths turn in their record books and enter the tomato contest from the tomato project. We had one teen sign up to be an ambassador with the State 4-H program.

This semester, we partner with Saluda Primary and Elementary to provide art to Kindergarten through Fifth-grade students. We go each month for one day per grade. It has been a rewarding experience to see what the students can do.

Just before the first day of fall, we hosted the 2023 Saluda Livestock Show. We had a show for beef cattle, goats, poultry, rabbits, and dairy heifers. We had an excellent turnout for all the shows.

We look forward to more in the months, weeks, and days ahead to improve the best.

Contact your 4-H agent for more information! Lblack4@clemson.edu